Prior to this official confirmation, there was an image of Nishino circulating online (above) with a quote from him reading, "Snorlax is like my kid."

In Japanese, Snorlax is called "Kabigon," which, according to Pokémon urban legend, was Nishino's nickname. The reason is that "kabi" (カビ）means "mould," and apparently, Nishino would even eat food that had gone moldy.

In the wake of community and political pressure following the livestreaming of the horrific terrorist attacks at Christchurch on Friday, Australian ISPs have started blocking some sites used to rehost footage of the livestream, including the infamous 8chan image board.